satellites

"How can we live if we don't change?"

Warren and Rebecca had three children. They had always wanted three, and ten years after getting married, here they were with three healthy and happy kids.

There was Danny. A rambunctious 9 year old, with a strong appetite and yellow belt in karate. Danny was also the listener. Sometimes it amazed his parents just how much he knew, even about them. It could be annoying, but it was beautiful to see how that quality emerged as such a caring part of him. He was so aware of what others were going through or needed help with.

There was Eliza. She was the intellectual, always sitting somewhere thinking. She had learned to read already and was devouring books they way her big brother devoured dinner. Eliza's main love had always been learning. And she held her knowledge. Already her understanding of things, her knowledge base was far beyond that of the average 6 year old.

And there was little Hope. They named her Hope because that pregnancy had been so difficult. She was the sensitive one, known to cry at the drop of a hat. But she was also the daring one, eager to brave one adventure after another. She was only 2 years old but she had been that way since birth. So open about her feelings. So ready to try out the whole world.

To Warren and Rebecca, it had seemed these amazing kids had just sprung from mid-air. That they were born with these amazing personalities and gifts. It was their natural state, nothing that instilled in them or taught to them. But just maybe, it was Danny seeing his father everyday at his karate practices that made him first begin to notice and care about the kids whose parents never showed up. Maybe it was the way Rebecca took the time to answer every one of Eliza's questions that let her know that learning was important. And maybe it was the way Warren and Rebecca poured affection on Hope that gave her the sense that crying was okay and that they would always be there when she fell.

There is a truth that may have escaped Warren and Rebecca. That loving makes them grow. Telling them that you love them reassures them, and that confidence gives them license to better. Showing them how much you love them encourages them, and that manifests in bigger dreams and goals.

So if you haven't already today, love someone.